National Guard trains biathlon team at NRA 3-Position Smallbore Championships

Camp Perry, Ohio - Two competitors are dominating the Biathlon at this year's Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia — Belarus' Darya Domracheva and France's Martin Fourcade. Winning four out of the first six events outright, Domracheva and Fourcade personify the marksmanship, discipline and stamina required to succeed at such a demanding sport on the international level.

Seven months earlier and 5,500 miles to the east, we met up with another group of biathletes who share those same characteristics. Those of the Ohio National Guard.

Compiled from sectional tournaments held all over the United States, the Indoor Championships involve thousands of shooters and are the NRA's biggest competition of the year. And between smallbore, air rifle, BB gun light rifle, pistol and air pistol, competitors have a lot of options.

Because the championships are shot postal match-style with all the sectionals, there is a large window for shooters to compete. The Open championship runs from 1/1 - 3/18 and the Junior championship from 1/1 - 4/15.

Each summer, the nation's finest civilian and military marksmen and women square off for weeks of rifle and handgun competition while vying for the NRA's historic and prestigious trophies. From pistol, to smallbore rifle, high power rifle, and long range high power rifle, the national matches have something for just about everybody.

She’s a “wildcat,” this college co-ed named
Emily Holsopple, and she’s poised to help
bring her shooting team, aka the Kentucky
Wildcats, to an NCAA Championship in
March when she competes in 50m, 3-Position
Smallbore Rifle.

Shooting since the she was 11, this quick
study won the Women’s 50m Rifle 3-Position
Junior Olympic National Championship at the
age of 14 and never looked back. Recruited by
the University of Kentucky for its prestigious
college shooting team, she also has earned
All-SEC Academic Honors. Last year, she
won the silver medal in 3-Position at the
2013 National Championships.

Fairfax, Virginia - My list's #3 is the successful year in NRA Competitive Shooting. While all may seen quiet in the cold winter months, the Competitive Shooting staff is working hard to make sure it continues offering a wide range of shooting activities to everyone interested in our great American tradition - from novices to world champions.

How many activities? The NRA sanctions more than 11,000 shooting tournaments and sponsors more than 50 national championships each year.

While not as visible as Camp Perry or the Bianchi Cup, NRA Competitive Shooting's largest event actually began yesterday. The National Indoor Rifle & Pistol Championships is the biggest competition of the year, bringing in thousands of shooters who participate comfortably from their backyards in sectional tournaments across the country.

Great American and All-Access highlight new projects for the NRA in 2014

Fairfax, Virginia - The National Rifle Association has a number of new projects ready to kick off in 2014. And it all begins with the Great American Outdoor Show in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

Launching bright and early at 9:00am on February 1st and running through the 9th, the Great American Outdoor Show (presented by Outdoor Channel) promises to be the largest consumer outdoor show in the nation. Everyone from Beretta to Parker Bows and Remington to Yamaha will be on hand to show off their wares.

Ticks are on sale now — for $12.00 adults, $6.00 for the little ones 13 and under — at the Great American website.

Fister turns rifle prowess into NRA Championships and College Scholarship

Port Clinton, Ohio - Finding the X ring while taking part in NRA's National Rifle and Pistol Championships can be challenging enough. Finding it from three positions during the smallbore rifle phase of the championships can be even more trying. But Amy Fister, winner of this year's NRA 3-Position Rifle High Woman title, found it with no trouble at all. A surprising result given her wry self description.

"I'm a nerd," she said with a laugh. "I'm very dedicated to my studies."

From the NATIONAL RIFLE ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA - National Smallbore Rifle Championships moving to Indiana

FAIRFAX, Va. – For the third time in more than
100 years, the NRA National Smallbore Rifle Championships will not be held at
Camp Perry, OH. Instead, the 2014 championships will move three hours west to
the Chief Wa-Ke-De Range in Bristol, IN.